Hearing-impaired during COVID-19
Life for the hearing-impaired during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In these uncertain times during the COVID-19 pandemic, more people are wearing face masks, which makes it even more difficult for the hearing-impaired. They can no longer rely on visual cues to help them hear in conversations. Using facial expressions or lip reading to communicate, they are suffering now more than ever. Not to mention with the CDC’s recommendation to stay at least six feet apart from others, those with hearing loss can’t even get close enough to the person they’re talking to in order to hear.
Social Isolation
When you have a moderate hearing loss you may only hear 50% of what is said. Try adding a facial mask over your mouth and having a hearing loss. More people are having a hard time communicating during this COVID-19 pandemic. Having a hearing loss or not understanding what is said can be really frustrating and can cause you to fall into social isolation. This is even worse now that there is a stay at home order in place. Remember, you are not alone! We are still here to help you hear your best.
Depression
With so many older folks being ordered to stay in their homes and not go out, they tend to withdrawal and start to o in order to communicate effectively, you have to fill in the gaps with a combination of lip reading, context clues, and guessing. Just imagine if holding a simple conversation required you to solve a puzzle. Now think of the number of conversations you have in a day? That’s a lot of puzzles for you brain to solve, so it’s no surprise your hearing loss can affect your work.
Tips to communicate
- Get the person’s attention; address them directly.
- Be in the same room.
- Slow down your speech.
- Reduce background noise.
- Rephrase your statement if the person doesn’t understand you at first.
Southwestern Hearing Centers is here for you during this time. We are still open, we are still seeing patients on a one-on-one basis. We are taking the proper steps in order to keep our patients healthy and safe while visiting us.